Greetings, gamers, and welcome to another edition of RTM. I hope everyone had
a great holiday season, including some special moments with friends and family.

This month is kind of a special month for us as this is our 20th issue of
RTM, and we have quite a few features for you. We have cartoon spaceships taking
over vehicles, a forgettable Mattel computer, old Nintendo launch titles
including an education title other than Donkey Kong Jr. Math, and so much
more. Plus I hope you like Frogger, because there's a whole lot of Frogger games
covered here.

Sp let's get this issue started. But first, a quick word from my partner,
Alan Hewston.

100 issues in 100 months - the RT &
RTM

by Alan
Hewston

While this is not our 100th issue, it does represent 100 consecutive
months/issues in a row of retrogaming news, 20 issues from the Retrogaming Times
Monthly (RTM) and 80 from our parent magazine the Retrogaming Times (RT). Tom
Zjaba at www.tomheros.com not only began the Retrogaming Times, but he then
allowed folks like myself and Adam to contribute regularly to his magazine, and
when his schedule did not permit, he passed the torch on to us. Tom graciously
allowed us to continue on with much the same format, and nearly the same name,
and to even advertise our site on his. We thank Tom as well as our number one
sponsor, AtariAge.com, who generously posts our press releases every month on
their highly visible and well frequented web site. We also want to say thanks
and keep up the great work to Nathan Kozlowski,and his Coleco Nation, which is
sort of a cousin to the RTM. www.coleconation.com

Yes, this is RTM issue #20, and we're proud of making it this far. Adam and I
had 20 issues in mind as a goal. We were determined to make it this far (making
100 months in a row), even if it were just the two of us writing. Fortunately,
we have both expanded our coverage to more systems and to have added a few more
writers and columns along the way. Not everyone contributes every month, but we
still have a lot of fresh ideas and a fair number of readers, so we'll keep
pressing on in the future months to come. I know that I'll be slacking off some
in my contributions in a month or two, as my family life continues to eat up
more of my time. I expect to have shorter reviews and fewer articles, but will
keep helping as much as I can, and host the site.

To help you the readers find some of our past efforts more quickly, I have
started a page for some of our more popular articles, where you can track down
the review or game by name and click on the link to that issue. Tom did a nice
job of this for the Retrogaming Times, so it is only fitting that we follow
suit.

ColecoVision Game Pack #2 made its debut at the Classic Gaming Expo in August
2004. As with #1, Game Pack #2 was created by Daniel Bienvenu, published by Good
Deal Games, and features a collection of twelve games for your ColecoVision. The
majority of challenges found on the cartridge are puzzle and brain games, but a
few simple arcade games are also hidden within.

After
playing a few of the games, you'll start to notice that many are variations of
the classics. Memory Match and Treasure are two games that will test your memory
skills and are related to the classic memory card game that we've all played at
some point in our lives. Gomoku and Tetrad are similar to the game Connect Four,
with Gomoku having fewer restrictions to where you can place your pieces. Tiouk
Tiouk seems to be a distant cousin of Checkers, with Minesweeper and Reversi
being easily recognizable games. The final two, Explosion and Isola, don't
appear to be related to any commonly known games.

Game Pack #2 makes the claim to be the first ColecoVision game with advanced
artificial intelligence. Technically, I really don't know if that's true, but I
do know that the computer is tough to beat in any of the nine brain games. All
allow you to choose between two computer skill levels and, for many, the easiest
level possesses a big enough challenge. If you get tired of playing the
computer, you can also take on a fellow human since all but Minesweeper allow
for two players.

Initially hidden on the
cartridge are three arcade games that were originally programmed for the
Commodore Vic-20. Tank vs UFO, Rocket Command, and Killer Comet can all be
accessed by first playing a game of Treasure and/or Memory Match, Isola, and
Reversi (respectively) and then pushing "0" to play one of the three. Tank vs
UFO is your basic air and land combat game, but the other two are pretty unique.
Both Rocket Command and Killer Comet require the use of only one action button,
but still pose unique challenges. In Rocket Command you have a row of missiles
that you consecutively launch from the ground at passing planes. With every
wave, the planes and missiles increase in speed and make the end goal, of
hitting as many planes as possible, difficult to accomplish. Killer Comet is the
best game of the twelve, even though it's really only a minor game. The pace
starts of slow enough, but soon the speed and your blood pressure increases to
intense levels. Essentially it's a stationary version of Asteroids, where the
comet slowly approaches you by traveling across the screen. The comet takes a
good amount of hits to completely destroy and every successive comet comes
towards you at a more frantic pace. I always admire games that have very limited
and simple gameplay, but are exciting and fun to play. The hidden games on this
cartridge share these characteristics.

While the games themselves are quality programs, the sound and graphics of
Game Pack #2 are fairly simple and plain. One of four tunes repeatedly plays
during a challenge and the constant music often gets annoying. With brain and
puzzle games, the player requires a certain level of concentration that is
sometimes difficult to achieve when the included music is playing. It would have
been better to have limited sounds to only those that denote moves and actions.
If specific players want to play along to music, they could always listen to the
radio. Purple and pink are the dominant colors used in most of the games and
this proves to be an odd combination. A rotating set of colors would have helped
break up the monotony of the visuals and create more dynamic graphics. While
these issues exist with Game Pack #2, they a very minor considering that these
type of games rarely require outstanding graphics and sounds.

If you enjoy the mental battles from time to time, then you would definitely
want to pick up Game Pack #2. The diversity of games and gameplay options will
ensure you many hours of challenging diversions. Obviously, if you like more
action in your games, then this probably isn't for you. However, the games found
within this cartridge are from a genre that many people (and not just video
gamers) enjoy to play. If you've got a special someone that you'd really like to
play more ColecoVision with, then Game Pack #2 might be the successful choice to
get them interested in your favorite console.

Back in the good old days you could get free games for your computer. I don't
mean piracy when you copied your friend's games (although that went on very
regularly). I mean the free games that came as listings in the back of most
computer magazines. My high school regularly got about three or four computer
magazines in each month, and they nearly always had game listings for the Vic
20. My fellow Vic 20 owners and I would photocopy the listing (sometimes we
would just tear it straight out of the magazine) and take it home to type into
our Vic. Often we would type it in together. One person would read out the
listing while the other typed and we would swap jobs after every 10 lines or so.
If the listing was correct (there were often mistakes that required quite a lot
of searching to find and rectify) it often meant another simple but fun game to
add to our collection.

But every now and again we would make the biggest of mistakes. We would
forget to save!!! We tried to ensure that we would save the listing as often as
possible. But sometimes you would be so busy typing and you just couldn't wait
for the game to be finished so you could play it.

I remember one day a friend and I spent just over an hour typing in a game.
When we finished typing it in, we typed "run" and started the game. It was a
really good game called "Vic Quest". It had some of the best graphics of any
type in game we had played. We must have played the game for about 2 hours
before we decided to play another game. I turned my Vic 20 off and was choosing
the next game to play when my friend asked, "Did we save that Vic Quest game?"
Realising our mistake we both nearly cried.

CLOUD BURSTCloud Burst is a fun shoot-em-up. Like many of
the classic shooters, you control a ship that moves back and forth across the
bottom of the screen and you must shoot the aliens that swoop down from above.
But what makes Cloud Burst a little different is the two types of aliens. One
type is a simple bomb that explodes once it hits the ground. The second type of
alien is a type of "lander". Once this type hits the ground it scurries along
the ground toward your ship in an attempt to blow you up. Luckily your ship can
fire in three directions, up, left and right, depending on the direction you
push the joystick as you press the fire button. This all adds an interesting
gameplay element that makes Cloud Burst a little different to most classic
shoot-em-ups. The reason that game is called Cloud Burst is because the aliens
actually launch out of the clouds that scroll along at the top of the screen.
Destroying the clouds prevents the onslaught from the aliens and takes you to
the next level where things start to get faster and more difficult. Graphics are
multi-coloured but quite blocky. Sound is pretty good with excellent firing and
explosion sound effects as well as a short but good ditty when it is Game Over.
All up, this is a very fun but slightly repetitive shoot-em-up with enough
unique elements to make it a worthy addition to your collection.MY SCORE
- 7/10

SATELLITE PATROL Here is a very good shoot-em-up that is also quite a technical
achievement for the humble Vic 20. At first glance nothing looks all that
impressive, with large blocky sprites and simple sound effects. But dig a little
deeper and you start to be quite impressed with the smooth 8-way scrolling and
trippy animation on the borders. I think they forgot to tell the programmer that
the Vic 20 isn't meant to be able to do that sort of stuff. The game itself is a
variant on Asteroids and it also reminds me of one of my favourite arcade games,
Bosconian. Your task is to locate and destroy a number of Satellites. This is
made more difficult by a large number of asteroids that are floating about. The
satellites themselves also launch a barrage of mines that will destroy you with
one touch. So it is a non-stop shooting-fest as you hunt down and destroy the
enemy satellites. However the game is let down by the large blocky sprites. The
screen is very cramped and you have very limited visibility (if that is right
word). When an asteroid or satellite appears, you have very little reaction time
to either destroy or dodge the enemy. This leads to a loss of life that often
feels unfair. If the sprites were smaller and you could see a wider view of the
action it would make this game far more playable and would certainly add a few
extra points.MY SCORE - 6/10 (9/10 for technical achievement)

SNAKE BITE
Just about every classic system has at least one variation of this game. Snake
Bite is a game where you steer your snake around the screen, trying to eat the
apples that randomly appear. The quicker you get to the apple and eat it, the
more points you receive. At first it is quite easy to move your snake around.
But the more you eat, the longer your snake becomes. Before too long your snake
is very long and it becomes difficult to move about and if you make your snake
run into his tail you lose a life. One added element that adds some variation
and extra challenge is that at the start of the game you can select how many
plums you want, 0,1 or 2. Plums move quickly and erratically around the screen.
If they hit the head of your snake you lose a life. All up, this is a simple but
very addictive game. Graphics are as simple as they come, just blocks and lines,
but they are quite colourful and do the job just fine.MY SCORE - 6/10

DEADLY SKIES Now here is a really great game featuring some very nicely defined
graphics. You control a helicopter and must destroy the enemy city to proceed to
the next level. The city obviously is trying to defend itself and it launches
rockets and homing missiles at you while a bomber flies across the top of the
screen and drops bombs down on you. This enemy fire ensures you are constantly
on the move. This is one of those great, frantic shoot-em-ups that really test
your reflexes. As already stated, the graphics are very good, however they are
slightly let down by some jerky scrolling. Sound is quite average. But these
negative aspects do not detract from this being a really fun game. The game
could be described as an update on the game Carnival. At least that is how Ward
Shrake describes this game in his brilliant Cartzilla document. Have a play and
see if you agree.MY SCORE - 8/10

The Many Faces of . . . Frogger

by Alan Hewston

This game has almost as many "Faces" as Benny Hill, and is the one I've been
saving for our anticipated by 100th issue. I hope that those who have asked for
it and waited are still active readers. Now that we are here, well actually this
is issue #20, but it could have been #100 if the Retrogaming Times were still
ongoing. I was going to split this into two articles, but Adam gave me a couple
more days to complete reviewing all versions and cram it all in now. With so
many versions and multiples on some systems, these details and scores may have
some problems. The Gameplay was especially hard to review and draw the line in a
fair way. It ultimately came down to those with the Otter and second snake
getting the nod, as well as those with full, non-stop music making the stand.

You
know the story. Go Froggy Go! Can the Frog cross the busy highway and dangerous
river and make it to his home bay. You gotta keep on hopping 'til you get to the
top. Make it to the top 5 times to complete a round (level). Ribbit! You have
only so much time (timer bar) for each frog - so Go Froggy Go! You score points
for each step forward, for reaching a home bay and bonus points for any time
left. Avoid the cars, busses, vans and trucks while crossing the freeway. Hop on
turtles and logs to cross the river, but be careful to get off before any turtle
submerges or the Otter gets you. Rescue the Lady frog or eat a Fly to earn bonus
points. Avoid the Crocodile's mouth and the deadly Snakes that slither along the
sidewalks. Don't float off-screen or miss your home bay and hit the hedges or
your froggie goes splat. Some home versions allow the wraparound or as an
option. So . . . Why does the Frog drown in Frogger?

At the arcade, there were several little glitches in the game that can "bug"
you - visit the Killer List Of Videogames (klov.com) to read all of them. KLOV also notes that
the full title track for Frogger plays longer than the one minute you have to
reach home. The highway traffic will speed up if you take too long. Frogger
ranks the 14th most popular arcade game of all time out of 4300+ games at
KLOV.com.

Frogger came to the home systems in an unusual way. Sega licensed the home
versions to two different companies; Parker Brothers received the cartridge
rights, while Sierra OnLine received the magnetic media rights, covering floppy
disks and cassette tapes. Thus, you have some systems with two or more official
versions - but our policy is to only allow the best one to count for the
system's scores and the medal stand. Original disk and cassette versions are
somewhat hard to find for most systems.

Now here's a LOT of
faces!

Arcade: Sega/Gremlin 1981 but actually
developed by Konami.
Home versions on cartridge, all licensed and released by
Parker Brothers

The following versions are not covered here in my review, but worth
mentioning.Apple Macintosh by Kevin Hunt - next generation system - the Bit
Age or Joypad eraMSX 1983 Konami - Not a US system - I do not have this
systemPC Booter 1983 Sierra On-Line Olaf Lubeck - next generation systems -
the Bit Age or Joypad eraTI-99 - unknown if a Sierra version was started -
not officially released.TRS-80 CoCo 1983 by Consoft Group on disk (maybe
cassette?)

Many screenshots for Frogger can be found at:
http://www.mobygames.com/game/frogger/screenshotsAlso several more can
be found at: http://www.atarimania.com/

Home Version Similarities: Except those in <> all home versions
have: a slow/fast speed option (which in some cases can be toggled any time) or
the game automatically speeds up if you delay <2600PB, INTY, Vic, O2? &
AP2>; there's lots of action on screen with 20+ items moving at the same time
<O2>; the familiar Frogger music is played at both the start up and the
end of the game <AP2 & C64Sierra>; there is a pause on some systems
<2600, TI, Atari 8 bit PB, CV & O2>; one screen contains all the
action <O2>; the screen is about 20 Frogger jumps wide <both 2600, all
Atari 8 bit, 5200, TI, CV & O2> by 14 high <both 2600>, the freeway
is 5 lanes wide <only 4 on 5200, all Atari 8 bit, both C64, TI, INTY>; a
riverbank or sidewalk which eventually has a Snake crawling on it <O2?>; 5
rows in the river, with Turtles and Logs; a larger log will be replaced by an
Alligator (was called a Crocodile at the arcade), but they are only deadly at
their teeth; the Turtles can dive and take you with them; a Snake can also ride
along on a log moving back and forth <both 2600, TI, C64PB, O2?, CV &
INTY>; eventually the Otter <O2, 2600PB, Atari 8 bit PB, Vic &
C64PB> swims in the river and any contact will knock you in; the scrolling
action is pretty smooth <Vic>, and the action wraps around from edge to
edge; there is more than a noticeable delay on these versions <2600 PB, AP2,
5200, Atari 8 bit PB, Vic, both C64 ports & O2?>; as rounds increase,
both the frequency and velocity of the motor vehicles can increase while the
frequency and velocity of the logs and turtles may decrease - all slowing you
down; there is also more variety in the speed of moving objects as well; you
earn points for each step forward, each frog who makes it home and bonus points
for each tick of the countdown timer remaining; the bonus points per frog are
either shown as a text message, or the timer bar scrolls down while the points
add up <both 2600 ports, 5200, all Atari 8 bit ports, C64Sierra &
O2?>; there's a log-riding lady frog - worth bonus points when you make it
home with her; a fly frequents your home bays and if you catch it, you earn more
bonus points; both of these bonus points are displayed on-screen at the home bay
<2600PB, Vic, O2? & INTY>; finally, there's even more bonus points for
getting all 5 frogs home, which completes that round; the first 4 rounds each
increase by one level of difficulty, up to level 4 at which point all subsequent
rounds play at difficulty level 4; as time runs out, you get a final audio
warning when time is almost up <INTY>; a bonus life can be earned when you
reach a certain score 10K or 20K <Atari 8 bit Sierra?, AP2, Vic &
O2?>; some of the action is repetitive, but there is enough randomness
<Vic, INTY & O2?> to keep you on the ball; there are distinct death
sounds by getting squished or by taking a dive <both 2600, AP2, TI, CV &
Vic>; finally, when the game is over, you will hear the music change <AP2
& C64 Sierra> and see a text message <2600, C64PB & O2> to let
you know.

There are several minor additions or differences found only on a few
versions: The choice of a starting round <Inty & 2600 PB>. The Frogger
music plays all the time <2600SP, 8 bit Sierra, TI, CV & C64 Sierra>,
which can be toggled off/on for the <8 bit Sierra, CV & C64 Sierra>.
You can exit the edge of the screen as wraparound is allowed, or is an option
<Vic, both 2600 & Inty>. There's not a full demo mode, but the
(attract mode) screen actions continues and shows either level 1 action, the
last round played, or level 4 action at the fast speed for <all PB &
Sierra for both the Atari & C64, and also the CV>. The music keeps on
playing - even during the attract mode only on the <Atari 8 bit Sierra>.
The speed of "fast" or "slow" is shown on screen for the <Atari 8 bit PB,
5200 & both C64 ports>. The round number is also displayed on screen for
the <2600SP, C64PB, TI, CV & Vic>. Of course all versions have an
Alligator showing up at the home bays, but on most versions (I did not keep
track) it'll gradually show up - meaning it is safe to land there until it's
fully there. Most display the high score, but the <Atari 8 bit Sierra
prototype> allow you to save a high score to disk. I awarded some versions
more graphic points for having more animation but I did not itemize them for
you. All told, there was animation via the two snakes wiggling, the otter
moving, the treads on tires turning, the turtle fins flipping/swimming, turtle
bodies submerging, lady frog moving about, Frogger changing colors when mating,
fly flapping wings, the croc moving into position, the croc afloat opening and
snapping shut, Frogger getting squished, then becoming a skull & crossbones,
and finally taking a dive (like E.L.O.)

The only versions that seem to be picky with collision detection problems -
which you can get used to, are the <2600PB & O2>. The <TI &
CV> versions are annoying as you fall off the edge - even if the Lady Frog is
right next to you, you can jump right over her and miss her yet enter the drink.
I made sure to confirm this does not occur on any other versions. Some versions
let you move up and down and up again and collect more points than you are
entitled to - which I scored as a minor penalty on the <AP2, Vic, all Atari 8
bit ports, 5200, CV, TI & both C64 ports>. But, are you really scoring
more points - since you are losing out on bonus time. IMHO, those versions are
better. Instead of counting this as a poor programming, I consider this a
software feature that allows enhanced strategy. That is, when you know you will
have to wait for a log or turtle anyhow, a smart and aggressive player can plan
his route to allow back and forth scoring multiple times - every little bit will
increase your score - otherwise not a factor in gameplay on those faithful to
the arcade. Note also that the arcade playfield's dimensions, i.e. how many
Frogger sizes wide and tall, differ from arcade to home. As usual, the arcade is
more vertical and home is more horizontal. Finally, since the arcade and manual
artwork shows an 18 wheeler about to run over poor Frogger, I probably could
have penalized those not actually having one on the road, but that would be too
picky - or not - let me know. I'm sure it wouldn't have made a difference.

Have Nots: Odyssey 2 (33)

Frogger on Odyssey2(Screenshot taken
from Phosphorus Dot Fossils)

My first reaction was
the multi-cart has this title and it may work on a few NTSC machines, but did
not work properly on mine. So this is a partial review, with me hearing and
playing a screwed up version, and checking out the rest of the action via screen
shots. Much is missing when I play, including nothing but home bays and water on
the second screen. I assumed that the Otter and second snake are missing but
nothing much else. I also assumed that nothing special or unique was added. The
Gameplay is good (6) but has been split into two screens, highway & river.
The countdown timer is replaced with a digit counter, not quite as fun. The
playfield size (width) is significantly smaller than all other versions.
Addictiveness is decent (6). My Frogger is not lined up with the lanes and there
are big gaps between the lanes - making me assume there will be collision
detection problems. Also, even worse, but possibly due to my NTSC machine, after
your final score is shown, in about 10 seconds the next game automatically
starts up whether you are ready or not. Graphics are fair (5), which is to say
good for the O2, with actual multi-color and some graphics variety. But there is
no detail, it's all blocky and the scrolling is unlikely to be smooth. There is
an actual title screen and some start up music that is not too bad. Due to this
music, the Sound is good enough (6) to keep you from being bored. The Controls
may take some getting use to, but I generously scored them a (10). Overall these
assumptions would make it my highest rated O2 game - so clearly worth playing if
you live in PAL land.

Have Nots: Vic 20 cart by PB
(38)

Frogger on Commodore Vic-20 (PB
cart)

My first reaction matched that of Tonks - the
screen is squished and no effort was put into making it look good. The scrolling
is choppy and everything is one color and all too repetitive. They only used
about half of the memory they set out to use - gee . . . could it have been
rushed out the door? The Gameplay is very good (7), but only exceeds the O2. The
Otter is missing and nothing seems to be random. It does have the greatest width
playfield at 22 spaces. But then this makes it look even more different
(standing out) from the vertical arcade screen. Just too claustrophobic-like.
The wraparound delay is too long and frustrating. Addictiveness is enjoyable (8)
with a pause via the <Run/Stop> and then <Space Bar> to resume
action. No other penalties that would prevent you from playing it over and over.
Graphics are not bad (6), but second worst to the O2, having ALL mono colored
action. There is not too much detail, not much color variety, not much graphic
variety either. All of the turtle sprite pixels are filled in with some color
and this does not match the background. So instead of invisible non-pixelated
portions of the sprite, there is a black box surrounding the turtles on the blue
water. Can we say RUSHED! Oh wait, does that make them multi-colored - not.
Sound is very good (7) with intro music and most of the effects. But most of the
effects seem cheap and not much better than the O2 & maybe the 2600 PB.
Controls are perfect (10).

Have Nots: Vic 20 cassette or disk by Sierra
(N/A)Rumor Mill: This version may have seen limited cassette
or disk release, got scrapped completely, or perhaps was sold off to become the
above Parker Brothers release. The RTM Vic 20 research staff could not find it
either, and obviously I do not have it - if it does exist. Sierra On-line covers
it in their multiple version manual - so we can assume that a prototype version
existed at some time. See also the Sierra On-Line screw ups below for Atari. The
manual notes that an 8K expansion is required & to insert the cassette and
load "*",1,1 . . . then type "SYS8192" to execute. By Sega. Anybody have this one?
I'm guessing it would beat the PB version, but clearly not be a medal contender.

Have Nots: Intellivision (38)

Frogger on
Intellivision

My first reaction was expecting another
controller struggle, but Frogger only needs to move L/R/U/D with no need for
buttons when you are playing - other than to pause, so the "stickler" did a fine
job for me, scoring a (9) in Controls. Gameplay is very good (7), with the
biggest problems are a lack of randomness and not having the second snake.
Addictiveness is enjoyable (8) with the standard pause <diagonals> -
hurrah as it was not removed by the evil Parker Brothers. But then on a bad note
the turtles submerge much too quickly to land on them, unless you know they just
came back up. There is a minor collision detection problem that you can probably
get used to. This is one of only 2 versions (why didn't the other ports do
this?) to select the starting round, up to 4 - good show! Graphics are pretty
effective (7), but are much more capable on the INTY. A lack of programming
effort here lead to no multi-colored action. There is a tiny bit of color
variety, with some graphics variety present and the animation is OK - the only
port with an animated fly. The text messages are the best here. Sound is worth
while (7), but the music is limited and a bit tinny sounding. Most effects are
in place. My wife LOVES Frogger and picked this cart out as the coolest looking
of the 9 carts.

Have Nots: Atari 2600 Parker Brothers cart
(DQ/38)

Frogger on Atari 2600 (PB
cart)

My first reaction was this is the one that really
sold well and my first home version. But, this one is disqualified as a better
(more complete) version takes the medal stand. The Gameplay is pretty much all
there, very good (7). It just missed scoring an 8, but I had to draw the line
here as the Otter and second snake were both missing. There is no pause but the
Addictiveness is effective (7) with a choice of starting rounds and the
individual player choice of wrap around on or off via the A/B difficulty
switches. There are some collision detection problems to get used to and this
version gets too hard too quickly. Graphics are very good (7) with some color
and graphics variety, and some animation. There is no multi-color and not much
detail. There's a visual flicker problem and a color fade to whatever item
Frogger floats on. Sound is only better than the O2 (7) with limited music but
most of the effects are there - only somewhat weak. The Controls are perfect
(10).

Have Nots: Atari 5200 (40)

Frogger on Atari 5200 & Atari 8-Bit (PB
cart)

My first reaction was this game, aside from the
controls interface appears to be identical to its 8 bit cousin. So all the Atari
8 bit Parker Brothers cart information and scores will match here, save for the
Controls for the 5200, which I scored a (9). Controls are very unique as you
need to point the stick in the direction you want to move and then press the
fire button to actually jump. This makes back and forth jumping very hard to do
quickly - which is bad. There is the keypad option which is not too bad, but I
don't think I'll ever score a finger method higher than a 9 - especially when a
good joystick method should be possible. The Gameplay is pretty good (7), but
scoring second to last to the O2. There is no Otter and the playfield width is
the smallest (besides the O2). The Addictiveness is fun to play (7), but the
evil Parker Bros have removed the built-in pause on the 5200, and of course did
not add it for the Atari 8 bit cart. The change in the sidewalk colors from
round to round is great and makes you want to play more and see if anything more
will happen. Why add such a neat feature, but then take away the pause? Graphics
are wonderful (9) with nice multi-colors, color and graphic variety, good
details and most of the animation. The Sound is very nice (8) with some music
and all the effects sounding good.

Have Nots: Atari 8 bit Parker Brothers cart
(DQ/41)My first reaction was of course that this port is
disqualified as a better version takes the medal stand. As noted above, all
information and scores from the 5200 apply here, save for the Controls, which in
this case are perfect (10).

Have Nots: Atari 8 bit Sierra On-Line cassette
(DQ/41)The Atari 8-bit computers had two Frogger ports from
Sierra: 1) the 1982 disk version by John Harris that's covered below, and 2)
this cassette version that is watered down from that 1982 disk. My first
reaction was of course that the cassette port is disqualified as the better
(more complete) disk version takes the medal stand - see below. The same
information and scores for that "disk" version will apply here as well - save
for a couple changes. The musical score does not play throughout, just the intro
etc. So the Sound score is lower (8), but is still very nice. There is no Otter
and a few lesser elements are missing lowering the Gameplay score to (7), but
still very good. I do not have the cassette version to play (actually I have an
original - cannot find it) - I guess that they cut out the music and some other
gameplay elements to reduce memory and save on loading time. Sierra really did
some funny things here as there was also an earlier disk version by Chuck Benton
(around 1981) that never got released - see way below. Then, the manuals (and I
have 2 different versions) both list Chuck Benton as the programmer and tell how
to play his version - which they did not release. Doh!

Have Nots: Apple II (41)

Frogger on Apple II

My
first reaction was the title screen is really cool - the best of course! To top
that, the Gameplay is the best (8), with the largest and best sized playfield,
and fewest (2) deductions. The Addictiveness rolls right on and gets the top
score (8) and is nearly the best as well - with the pause being <ESC>. The
Graphics are great (9), just about the best as well. Everything is
multi-colored, with great details and the animation is among the best. The color
variety and graphic variety could be better - as too many objects are similar.
There is a unique element here, where once you escort the Lady Frog, a heart
appears at the top of the screen - which lasts only for the duration of that
Frogger life. Almost everything you could ask for is there and done at least
pretty well. Unfortunately, this gold-medal wanna-be is cut down by the usual AP
][ setback of the Sound and Controls. Sound is exciting (7), but that internal
audio hurts here. There is only a limited amount of music and no audio
indication that the game is over. Most of the sound effects are in place,
including the adding up of bonus timer points - only found here and the C64. The
Controls are ugly using the analog joystick and I gave up even thinking about
them when I found the programming of your own keyboard set to work well and the
execution quite effective (9). As usual, only found on disk.

Have Nots: TI-99 (42)My first
reaction was the PB carts really look cool for the TI & Vic 20. This is
another one of those games where (due to the internal architecture) it is almost
identical to the CV in every way. Gameplay is nearly the best (8) - impressive.
The playfield width is a little small and unless I did not make it far enough
along, there appears to only be the one snake. Addictiveness is cool (7), but
only beats out the O2. This is mostly due to there being no pause, and the
really annoying feature (as mentioned above) where you fall off the edge. It
looks like there is room to jump one more time, but you drown. There is a
fast/slow choice. Graphics are outstanding (9) with full multi-colors, some
color and graphic variety, average details and good animation, plus added text
bonus point info. The on-screen round indicator displays up to 8 dots. Sound is
crisp (8) with almost all the effects in place and a lot more music than most
versions, but somehow they forgot to sound off when the game is over. Controls
are perfect (10) but there is some delay that will take some getting used to.
The cart is fairly hard to find, but well worth it as it just misses a medal.

Frogger on TI 99/4

Frogger on
Colecovision

Have Nots: Colecovision
(42)My first reaction was that this pretty much looks like
and plays just like the TI above and was probably programmed by the same person,
or ported over from the TI code. The scores and notes are identical to the TI
except for: There is an attract mode before and after the action starts, whereas
the TI is only after. The CV also allows you to toggle off/on the sound, and the
game action does speed up like the arcade if you waste time. That's it, other
than slightly different pixelations and the controls interface.

Have Nots: Commodore 64 Parker Brothers cart
(DQ/42)

Frogger on Commodore 64 (PB
cart)

My first reaction was once again that this port
is disqualified as a better version takes the medal stand. Gameplay is very good
(7), scoring a full point lower, but in reality, jut a wee bit less than the
medal winner. It's missing the second snake and the Otter - so I drew the line
there. Both 64 ports have only 4 rows of traffic and more than just a slit
second delay in the wraparound. The Addictiveness is actually the best score of
any official release (8) with a fantastic pause <fire button>! Looks like
they had programmed even more, with a choice to begin at round 4 , but this
is not listed in the manual and then when you start the game always plays
round 1 - oh well. But at least you can hit and watch the attract mode for
round 04. Fast/Slow is and choice of 1 or 2 player is . The Graphics are
superb (9), possibly the best with good multi-colors, graphic variety, color
variety, nice details and most of the animation. The round number, speed, and
text messages all appear. Missing only the time warning change in color or
flashing, and the "game over" text message. Sound is beautiful (8) with nice
music, but limited only to the intros, round completed and game over. All of the
necessary effects are included and well done. Controls are perfect (10).

Atari 2600 cassette for the Supercharger by Starpath
(43)My first reaction was many people have heard of it, but
how many have played it? Those who have not must give it a try - RIGHT NOW. OK,
well actually that may be hard to do, other than via emulation, or if you
actually have a multi-cart, the Supercharger and its cassette or the .wav files
or a Cuttle Cart I or II etc. The Gameplay is right on target (8) and probably
better than the arcade. The second snake seems to be missing, but maybe I'm not
good enough to see him yet. The playfield is also narrower than other home
versions. One of only 2 versions that automatically speeds up during gameplay.
Addictiveness is fun to play (7), but there is no pause and the game seems to
rush you along with almost no break between rounds or lives. The same A/B switch
option allows each player to select wraparound or not. Graphics are brilliant
(9) - you'd swear it was a newer system or computer. Everything is
multi-colored, with nice color and graphical variety, most of the animation, and
sufficient details. There's the text displayed bonus points, color change for
the timer, and an on-screen round number. Despite no flicker, there is still the
2600 dulling or fading of the color to whatever item Frogger floats on. Sound is
outstanding (9) with multiple songs but I think this is the only one where there
is no end-of-round change to the music. Most of the effects are included and
pretty good - missing are a distinct drowning sound and other minor elements.
Controls are perfect (10). Fairly hard to find the original cassette and even
rarer the inlay and box.

Atari 8 bit disk by Sierra (43)My
first reaction was confused as to which version it was, and not figuring out all
the Atari 8 bit versions until after my deadline passed. This version makes the
medal stand, and is most likely the one you'll find on a copied disk. Gameplay
is all there (8) with a smaller playfield size than some versions, but the most
complete version. The Addictiveness is exciting (7) with a demo and fast/slow
option, but darn it - no pause. Graphics are remarkable (9) with a full slate of
colors, multi-color, color variety, details and possibly the best animation.
Note also that none of the 15 versions has all of the graphic elements found in
all the others. A nice added touch is that the rows of logs and turtles are
different colors. The PB Cart also gave the logs 2 color schemes. Sound is the
best on this version (9), with multiple songs, playing throughout, and all
effects and changes in music when required done well. The landing in the home
bay is not quite as good here, and the adding up of bonus timer points was not
added (AP2 & C64Sierra). Controls are perfect (10).

Gold Medal: Commodore 64 disk by Sierra Online
(44)

Frogger on Commodore 64 (Sierra
disk)

My first reaction was the white Frog is annoying
and so I did deduct for it. Gameplay is just about all there (8) save for a
fifth row of traffic, some wraparound delay, but no wraparound options. The
Addictiveness is enjoyable (8), the best of any official versions save for the
PB C64 cart. Pause is <F7>, speed fast/slow is <F3>, start
<F1>. Missing on this version only is a two player game - a minor penalty.
Graphics are outstanding (9) and would have been the best if not for the albino
Frog. The same comments apply as mentioned earlier for the PB version, but there
is more animation here, plus the game over text. Not included were the
time-remaining bonus text messages and on screen round number. Sound is
remarkable (9) with a full music score and multiple songs. The time remaining
warning and "game over" music are missing. Just like the Atari sierra disk, the
"making it home" effect is not as good as some versions, but the adding up of
bonus points is cool. Toggle music <F5>. Controls are perfect (10). It
barely wins the gold but no doubt is a medal winner.

Woulda Coulda Shoulda: Atari 8 bit Sierra 1981 Prototype
(DQ/45)Wait . . . I'm not done yet . . . My first reaction,
and most other Atari fans was why did they not tidy up the graphics and release
this version. The game is completely different than the disk version that was
released, but I had to tell you about this one too. The scores and all info is
the same as the other version except for these differences. Addictiveness (+2)
as there is both a pause <Option>, and a choice to play 2 players
individually or simultaneously (Wohoo!!!). Oh yes and the rarely seen option to
save a high score to disk. This makes it the most addictive and best of all
versions - but it was unreleased!!!! Graphics are a little bit shabbier, with
more plain colors, but still fine. Heck, why didn't they just release both
versions on the same disk and let the players enjoy both.

Now all I want for Christmas is a Sierra online prototype of Frogger II (even
though there isn't one) with multiple songs and non-stop music, two players
simultaneous action and more. Reviewing these 15 versions in the busiest month
of the year was quite a task and I really needed more time. But I think that I
did a decent job of drawing the lines on scoring at just the right places so
that even though some versions may be close in one category and one minor
difference makes them score a full point apart, I think that my adjustments were
just right so that the final overall scores are fine. Shifting all scores in a
category a couple tenths of a point here and there so that the final rankings
using a 50 point scale are the same as what they would be for my 500 point scale
(using tenths of a point - not included here).

Acknowledgements, Updates and Errata from last month.This issue
typed with lots of lyrics from Froggy's Lament, Camptown Races, Livin' Thing (ie
taking a dive), and other Frogger related songs popping into my head - the
diving Turtles have fooled him again.

Thanks to the Atari Frog and Atarimania.com for again helping me sort out all
the Atari 8 bit ports.Thanks to Harry Hoffman from the TI-CHiPS for selling
his only TI-99 CIB Frogger just for this review.Thanks to Tom Zjaba for
holding a couple boxed versions from me - several years ago.Thanks to Thomas
McClaren for the Apple II version & Steve Knox for the official Atari disk
version.Note in the "Tron, the Ultimate Video-Radio Special", Ron Howard
says he can identify with the Frog and "Frogger" was one of his fave raves.

Thanks again to our editor Adam, who agreed it would be best to get all of
these Frogger faces in one issues so that we can all cover Winter Games next
month.

Next Month: Come back next month as the RTM covers the games of the
Winter. Specifically, we'll cover the Many Faces of "Winter Games" for the C64,
Apple 2, Atari 2600 and 7800. One of the few, Many Faces games that never made
it to the Atari 8 bit computer. Contact Alan Hewston at:
Hewston95@NOSPAMstratos.net or visit the Many Faces of site: http://my.stratos.net/~hewston95/RT/ManyFacesHome.htm

Retrogaming Commercial Vault

by Adam
King

For this month's helping of the Commercial Vault, I have for you the ad for
US Games' Space Jockey. The first part of this ad is animated with
cartoon spaceships flying over the landscape, spreading a wave of red light. We
then switch to live action and watch as the silhouette of the hero(?) fights the
aliens with a UFO and his 2600.

"Aliens have taken over the Earth. Every moving vehicle is theres,
and so's the land. You and you alone have captured one of their flying
saucers. Can you beat the aliens with their own machine? You Can! If you're
fast! If you're accurate! If you don't lose your nerve! You are the Space
Jockey. The fate of the Earth is in your hands. Yours and this new cartridge
from U.S. Games. Space Jockey! Fly if you can! Space Jockey! Win if you can!
Space Jockey! Sweaty palms are guaranteed with U.S. Games! "

Agent Lelia Blitz, the femme fatal of the Rolling Thunder team, has been
captured by the evil criminal organization known as Geldra and her time is
running out. As agent codename Albatross you must infiltrate the Geldra
syndicate, rescue Lelia, and eliminate Geldra's leader Maboo. You alone are
Lelia's only hope of rescue and the last chance Rolling Thunder has to end
Geldra's evil plans to rule the world. Released in 1986 Rolling Thunder didn't
do a whole lot that hadn't already been done but it offered enough unique quirks
to allow it to stand out. Unmistakably set in the 1960's, the visual style and
animation lead to Albatross feeling like a cross between James Bond and Maxwell
Smart. The basics of the game are a little bit like Shinobi with a tiny bit of
Elevator Action thrown in. For the most part each stage has an upper and lower
level which are moved between by either jumping up to the upper level or hopping
down to the lower level. Doors along each stage play a huge part in the game as
they add an element that keeps the player on their toes. Most of the doors will
have enemy henchmen behind them. Some of the doors will have a "bullet" sign and
going inside will add a supply of ammunition for your pistol. Even fewer doors
will have an "arms" sign outside of them, entering one of these doors will
outfit you with a machine gun, however your machine gun ammunition cannot be
replenished at "bullet" doors and once exhausted you're back to the pistol
alone. Any door can be entered to hide from enemy henchmen or arms fire but stay
hidden too long and the henchmen are bound to stake out the doorway and pin you
down.

In my review of Shinobi (RTM issue #14) I was quite vocal that it was a game
I simply did not like and while Rolling Thunder shares some gameplay elements
with Shinobi, Rolling Thunder is a game I love. Although they are somewhat alike
the whole corny 60's spy thriller angle is what has always sold me on this game.
Along with the constantly changing strategy element of using the doors and
having to conserve your ammunition Rolling Thunder provides an intense and
ever-changing experience. Three years after it was released in the arcade Tengen
released their home version on the NES and for the most part they succeeded in
bringing the experience home. Visually Rolling Thunder was one of the slickest
looking arcade games in its genre at the time of its release. Enemies moved
fluently, when Albatross would hop over railings he would do so with typical
60's spy style and would lean forward when firing, tuck his legs up beneath him
when falling from long distances, and kneel and fire similar to James Bond in
the famous 007 gun barrel opening sequences. Nearly all these visual flares make
their way over to the NES perfectly. Of course things are a little stiffer and
less detailed however pretty much every animation is in place. Enemy henchmen
look around for your position when they are hiding behind crates, the little
comedic cutscenes have been ported over, and scrolling is smooth and fluent.
Think of it as Rolling Thunder Jr. but it's all still there.

Audio is perfect with the Rolling Thunder spy riff playing at the beginning
of each level and stereotypical secret agent music throughout each stage, nearly
exact to the arcade original. Mirroring the audio, play control is perfect as
well. One button to shoot, one button to jump, and the directional pad for
movement - a very intuitive control scheme that keeps things simple so the
gameplay can remain fluid. Something else that wasn't lost in the transition to
the NES was the challenge. In the arcade you had a life bar made up of eight
units however light damage (being touched by an enemy) took four units and heavy
damage (being shot, falling off screen, falling into lava) took eight, so in all
actuality there were really only two total parts to the life bar. The Tengen
port goes ahead and changes the life bar to two units which makes a lot more
sense. Things can get pretty harry but with some quick thought and planning an
experienced player can work their way out of almost any situation.

I've always felt that Rolling Thunder on the NES was an overlooked game,
possibly because of the awful box art that made the game look more like a cheesy
adaptation of The Running Man rather than a pseudo 1960's spy adventure. Nearly
every time I stop into a store that deals in used retrogames I come across a
copy of Rolling Thunder for next to nothing so the game is easy to find and can
be picked up on the cheap. If you're looking to check out the original, recently
the arcade version of Rolling Thunder was included on Namco Museum 50th
Anniversary for all the major console platforms.

A picture of Alan Hewston with the videogame
legend himself, Ralph Baer

Pitfall Harry was
interviewed by G4's Laura Foy, back in November as I once again donned that
costume at this Fall's VGXPO near Philadelphia. The interview along with lots of
other VGXPO action aired in a mid December episode on G4TV - "Philadelphia
Freedom Episode #5043". A local VG dealer snagged it on DVR for me and will make
me a copy onto DVD. Woo Hoo! I was so busy there at the show that I missed the
costume contest (I had no chance to win, but my old costume started all these
contests - or so I keep tell people). I went and donned my costume (what is left
of it), and arrived just as they finished up the contest. Laura and her camera
crew spotted me and asked to tell her the story behind my costume. My daughter
was so jealous saying that daddy was on TV, but I told her - they'll not show
more than a couple seconds of the interview, if any of it. I was wrong. As
usual, I did parade around in it, got photos at the Atari Age booth, and then
decided to have Ralph Baer (Grand Father of video games) and Bill Kunkel
(Electronic Games Magazine co-founder) to sign the inside of it. I also was
happy to have our Video Game historian and author Leonard Herman sign it as
well. Len or Bill told me that David Crane is still waiting for me to show up in
costume at the Classic Gaming Expo.

The response to Ninteno Realm has been great, so I'm raising the number of
reviews per month to 8. Someone asked me why I don't flat out grade or score the
games. While it's impossible for me to avoid injecting my opinion in to the
reviews, I'd like to think that Nintendo Realm helps you determine which games
you'd like to try for yourself from an incredibly vast library of games.

This month we will finish out the Famicom's launch year of 1983, and look at
the beginning of 84. It's a mixed bag of sports titles, educational titles, and
the first Zapper light gun titles. But it starts off with another classic.

Mario Bros., published by Nintendo and released on September 9,
1983While this title was released in the United States under the Arcade
Classics category, when Mario Bros. was published for the Famicom, the arcade
game was not even a year old. The console port of the game manages to faithfully
capture nearly every aspect of game play from the arcade version. Only the game
play demonstration movies and the icicles that appear in very advanced rounds
didn't make it in to the game. However, unlike the Donkey Kong conversions,
Mario Bros. isn't nearly as pixel accurate. As a first generation Famicom game,
Mario Bros. had the minimum amount of memory. Less memory means fewer sprites.
Some sprites were reduced like the turtles, the fireballs, and Slipice, and
other sprites were fully rendered over two frames like the crabs and the flies.
To make up for this, in 1988 Nintendo released "Kaettekita Mario Bros." (or
Return of Mario Bros.) for the Famicom Disk System. This version was much more
faithful to the arcade. Despite the navigation of Japanese menus, this is the
version to try while the original is simply collectors' memorabilia.

Popeye no Eigo Asobi, published by Nintendo and released on
November 22, 1983This was the first of two educational titles that
Nintendo released, perhaps in order to appear more wholesome. While the second
one (covered below) came to America, this one did not despite the fact that the
title that roughly translates to "Popeye's English Spelling." The player chooses
one of six categories, and a series of Japanese words are presented for the
player to translate and correctly spell in English. So it really is an
introduction to English for Japanese speakers. Perhaps the Japanese could have
been removed (as is the case in game B anyway), but it would broken down to a
not so fun game of Hangman. The Popeye connection is loose at best, using the
Famicom sprites to show Olive Oyl watching from above, while Bluto hits a
punching bag that knocks Sweat Pea along a wire every time you direct Popeye to
punch an incorrect letter. You can make 10 mistakes before Brutus pushes Sweat
Pea too far and Olive gets mad at you.

Mario Bros.

Popeye's English
Spelling

Baseball, published by Nintendo and released on December 7,
1983For being the first baseball game on the Famicom, and a very
rudimentary one at that, this game's simplicity captures the spirit of baseball
quite well. The view alternates between a close up of the diamond, and a zoomed
out view of the whole park. Your team selection is pretty much limited to a set
of letters and their corresponding team colors, since, as far as many FAQ
writers can determine, there isn't much difference between the teams, even
though they each seem to have players at a variety of skill levels. Being the
basic entry, there aren't a lot of bells and whistles to Nintendo's Baseball,
but if you're the type of player who likes their sport games simple, you can't
beat this version. It was later adapted for play in the arcades using Nintendo's
Vs. system cabinets.

Donkey Kong Jr. no Sansuu Asobi, published by Nintendo and released
on December 12, 1983You probably know this game as Donkey Kong Jr. Math,
the second of the two educational games that Nintendo developed for the Famicom.
Many of the Nintendo fans that I've run across have a morbid curiosity about
this "game" since it happens to feature some of Nintendo's earliest popular
icons. But in truth, it is simply an educational game dressed up in arcade
clothing. There are two basic games in this cartridge. In the Calculate games,
two player face off by alternating between choosing a number, and an arithmetic
operation until one of them reaches the goal answer that Donkey Kong is holding
over his head. The first Jr. (yes, there are two of them, the normal colored ape
and a lighter shaded cousin) to reach the goal answer five times wins. The
Exercise mode lets the player choose the type of arithmetic problem they want to
solve, and then the player must climb up and down chains to set the correct
digit for each part of the problem.

Baseball

Donkey Kong Jr. Math

Tennis, published by Nintendo and released on January 12,
1984Like Baseball, this is a straight forward simple take on Tennis. It
is rather fun to play if you can overlook one point. As the player, you face the
direction that you most recently ran in. So whether you hit the ball regularly
or with a backhand swing depends on how much time you have to reach the ball and
correct your direction before you swing. This was a problem that Nintendo
eliminated when they made the Gameboy version of Tennis. You can select from 5
skill levels, each one increasing the speed of the game. You have two choices,
you can either return the ball regularly or lob the ball. If you're close to the
net and can hit the ball in time, you can smash it. You always play from the
bottom half of the tennis court. While the referee only slightly resembles
Mario, he official presides over the tennis matches on the Gameboy. This game
was also adapted to the Nintendo Vs. arcade system, where the player has been
changed from a man to a woman.

Pinball, published by Nintendo and released on February 2,
1984Even after arcade games outshined pinball machines, there have been
a few video game offerings that attempt to capture the magic of pinball, and
this one does so quite admirably, considering the technology available at the
time of its development. With two levels to the table, and numerous targets to
go after between them, Pinball can be surprisingly addictive. Even after you've
managed to make three penguins appear on the top level, or turn over all of the
cards at the bottom, the one thing that may keep you playing long afterwards is
a chance at that elusive bonus round featuring Mario and Pauline from Donkey
Kong. In the bonus round, Mario holds a plank over his head and has to keep the
ball in play Breakout style, long enough to free Pauline from the top of the
screen. When she falls down, Mario must catch her and return her to safety, and
then the scene repeats itself until the ball is lost. This game was converted
for play on the Vs. arcade system as well, and given minor graphical
enhancements, but overall adjusted to be much more difficult.

Tennis

Pinball

Wild Gunman, published by Nintendo and released on February 18,
1984The first Zapper title ever developed for the Famicom, Wild Gunman,
is actually a throw back to one of Nintendo's earlier pre-Famicom arcade games
from 1974 that projected cowboys on to a screen. The player had to shoot his gun
when the coybow's eyes flashed before the cowboy could get the drop on the
player. The same spirit was programmed in to the Famicom version of the game. In
addition to the eyes flashing, the gunslinger would shout Fire, at which point
you had only a few moments to draw and fire before your opponent did. As your
level increased, your opponents draw time decreased. There was also a shooting
gallery where you took place in a shoot out with varmints through the windows of
a saloon. In the Vs. arcade version of the game, two players could face off
against one another for the fast draw title.

Duck Hunt, published by Nintendo and released on April 21,
1984We've reached what is arguably the most recognized Zapper title.
Venerable Nintendo fans are still haunted in their dreams by the hound dog that
laughs at you whenever a duck escapes from your crosshairs. In game A, one duck
flies out from the thrush at a time, while two ducks appear in game B. In both
cases you only get three shots to take out the one or two ducks before they fly
on. Your faithful companion holds up your kills if you manage to get any, or
laughs at your misfortune if you hit none. While you couldn't shoot the dog on
the console, you can shoot him in Duck Hunt's Vs. arcade counterpart, during a
Bonus Round unique to the arcade version. The lesser known alternate mode in
Duck Hunt is a skeet shooting competition where two discs shoot out for the
player to destroy before they disappear in the horizon. An obscure fact about
this game is that a second player can pick up a joypad and direct one of the
ducks on the screen while the first player takes his shots.

As a football junkie I read stories every year about unknown athletes with
amazing talents trying to make an NFL team against all odds. Maybe it's a kicker
nailing 70-yard field goals or a receiver running a 4.18 40-yard dash.

They're usually among the first cuts in training camp.

The one or two things they do well can't overcome a lack of fundamentals. The
kicker nails line drives that get blocked and the receiver drops pro-velocity
throws. But players and coaches tend to remember the guy's talents fondly and
they often are fan favorites, at least until the next "hidden wonder" comes
along.

So as the playoffs near (hence the football metaphor), this month's look at
the world's worst retrogaming machines focuses on some positive impressions of
the Mattel Aquarius, one of the ultimate "camp bodies" among computers of the
1980s. It also concludes a list of game reviews and summaries from my previous
column - and as luck has it most of the better titles are among these listings.

Given the inability of the Aquarius to shoulder serious tasks or play games
on par with the Ataris and Commodores of the era (or even Mattel's own
Intellivision), the things users like about the machine can be a bit obscure.

"Back in 'the day,' the Aquarius's really nifty feature was that you could
set the foreground/background color independently for each character cell on the
screen," writes James "The Animal Tamer," author of Virtual Aquarius (www.geocities.com/emucompboy), in
a Yahoo user group forum. "The Commodore 64 couldn't do that in text mode!"

Another Yahoo group member, Davey B., states "for me the best feature of the
Aquarius is the actual physical design. The wedge shape, the use of white, black
and blue colors, all that works together to make a computer that is pleasing to
look at...Radofin was also smart enough to give Aquarius more than the 32
columns so common in those days. 38 columns of text (note: 40 is the official
spec) by 24 lines gives much more information than the 32 columns by 16 lines of
the Coco series. And the character set is very readable...All in all a pretty
but quirky computer. I love it."

A lot of relatively decent cassette software came from third-party
programmers in Britain after Mattel abandoned the machine, wrote Jason Leinen,
who describes himself as a "hopeless Aquarius addict," in an e-mail. He also
notes many games at least looked better than their Intellivision cousins,
although playability suffered since graphics were based on pre-programmed
characters rather than pixels.

"It amazes me what they were able to do with only 256 symbols (and their
negatives)," he wrote.

The best games are generally strategy and other non-arcade titles where
smooth animation and fast action aren't as critical, as hardware like the
keyboard (lousy as it is) gives the Aquarius a natural advantage over most
gaming consoles. Advanced Dungeons And Dragons was an example of one such game
last month; perhaps the best game for the machine - at least in terms of
potential and as a preview of future hits - happens to be the last in the list
below.

Grades are mine, purely subjective and generally on a curve in relation to
other titles for the machine. "Not graded" refers to games I have limited or no
playing time with, and are summaries of other users' opinions or overviews.
Windows users interested in playing these games on an emulator can find Virtual
Aquarius at www.geocities.com/emucompboy,
with many of the titles below easily obtained through a Google search. Full
instructions for using the emulator are last month's column.

Shark Shark

Macho Man
(C)Not a bad homebrew/cassette maze game, but totally misnamed. The man
you try to guide to the top of the screen is a total wimp. He jumps up through
moving gaps on each platform, and is disabled for several seconds if he hits his
head or falls even one level (usually long enough to fall through more gaps as
they appear under him). Gaps narrow as you get near the top of the screen,
making perfect timing necessary. Playability is aided by simple left-right-jump
movement and timer-based games rather than a set number of men. The graphics are
as simple as can be, but speed is good and it's a challenge without being
frustrating.

Mad Mould (B-)A simple shooter that I enjoy more than the grade
given here because it manages to capture some of the addiction of Robotron,
maybe my all-time favorite arcade game. Four clusters of single-character-size
squares (the mould) appear at the corners of the screen and immediately start
moving toward the player at the center of the screen, sort of like the grunts in
the Williams Electronics classic. The player shoots them using four keys that
control both firing and moving. That's it, yet there's enough squares and
everything moves fast enough to make it a fun challenge. One of those homebrew
efforts you'd think would be more common on computers of the era, but I don't
recall seeing it often or done this well.

Mazantics (not graded)An Aquarius fan site calls this the
"shoot-'em out game of 1985," although it's unclear if this is opinion or part
of the marketing hype - especially since it appears to be a clone of Berserk.
You control spaceman Luke Lazer, shooting your way through single-room mazes
filled with increasingly aggressive Tobors. Graphics look solid, although the
apparent use of character graphics makes it likely the choppy movement problem
of other games exists here. Not having played it, criticism is probably unfair,
but given how well Berserk translates to most other platforms, including the
humble Atari 2600, a tepid translation here wouldn't cut it.

Melody Chase (not graded)Straight from promotional copy: "Melody
Chase is an exciting adventure into the realm of music for one to eight players.
The action takes place on a bar of music with twenty moving notes and endless
number of firemen armed with waterballs. You control three fireballs. Dodge the
firemen and your fireball at the silent notes. But hurry! You have a limited
time for each shot. You will lose your fireball if you wait too long to shoot,
if you miss a tone, or if you touch a man. If you touch a waterball the firemen
will gain speed and quickly change directions to trap you. If you hit a note,
you gain points and hear the note play. Shoot again with the same fireball. Hit
all twenty notes and hear the song play. Then begin the bonus bars. See how far
you can go!"

Stalacties

Millypede
(B-)A playable clone of Centipede, although with numerous quirks almost
certainly due to a need to simplify the game for the Aquarius hardware.
Centipedes are the only enemy - no spiders, fleas, etc. - but they speed up over
time and more than one appears during later waves to increase the challenge.
Graphics are pretty lame - the centipede segments are heart symbols. The player
has four-directional movement, rotation and shooting controls, plus the ability
to move anywhere on the screen, making it a little like Asteroids. The mushroom
field is generated anew after each wave, so those used to shaping it to their
liking won't be able to use that strategy here. Speed is good and it's OK for a
few games, but versions for other computers are generally better than this
(Atari's is the ultimate example a game can look horrid and still be a blast to
play). The grade would be lower, except it still represents an above-average
large-program effort for this machine.

Night Stalker (C-)I really want to like this maze shooter, which
bears some resemblance to Berserk, but between the lousy controls and choppy
movement I just can't muster the enthusiasm. The premise is solid, with
progressively more aggressive robots to shoot as the player seeks out the key
needed to escape each maze. Extras such as spiders and a "safe" bunker in the
center of the screen add variety and it's a faster-paced game than Berserk. But
I couldn't make any meaningful progress as all, constantly getting killed
because I couldn't get anything targeted and shot quickly enough. Given a choice
between faulting the program or my competence, this is one of those cases where
I'll pass the buck.

Pack Mr. (not graded)Obviously the Pac-Man by default, although
there's mention of having the player "climb columns, scale slopes (and) lance
lanes" while zipping around mazes eating dots and monsters. I haven't seen a
screenshot of the game, so there's no way of telling if this hype or unique
content. Another game that requires the mythical 16K RAM pack, which may or may
not have been readily available to customers.

Phrogger (not graded)A Frogger-type game by Add-On Electronics
that apparently came on cassette and ran on the base 4K machine. As such it's
hard to imagine it rivaling the generally solid official versions on even simple
machines like the Atari 2600, but there's no other details or screenshots
available.

Torment

PostMan Pot
(B)Simple bits of Frogger and Pac-Man (actually the obscure spin-offs
Ladybug and Turtles are more accurate) make this an enjoyable game that plays
well given the Aquarius' limits. The player (a simple circle) turns a certain
color by touching the post office (a block) at the right edge of a maze, then
must navigate past cars and angry dogs to the house (more blocks) of the same
color. The two lanes of cars make for tricky navigating since they move faster
than you, and the gates allowing the player to get to the houses open and shut
rapidly. Additionally, the cars can wrap around the screen and the dogs can pass
through the houses, but the postman can't. Deliver a set number of packages and
the player moves to more advanced levels with faster and more numerous enemies.
Control is simple with only four directional keys and the learning curve is
reasonable. Too bad most Aquarius owners never got to play it since it requires
the 16K RAM expansion pack, especially since the game doesn't have the kind of
depth that seems to require anything beyond the base memory in the hands of a
skilled programmer.

Shark! Shark! (B)This is apparently an unreleased prototype
recently posted on the Internet by a users' group. It's a solid concept that
needs something more to really make it a complete game. The player uses four
directional keys to control a shark that starts as a baby and grows as it eats
other fish smaller than it swimming mostly horizontally in the ocean, sort of
like the Williams arcade game Bubbles or computer classic Serpentine. Coming
into contact with a bigger fish is fatal. As the player grows, so do the size of
the enemies, making maneuvering more of a chore. But it never gets hard enough
to be a significant challenge and there needs to be some variety to make it more
interesting. A two-player option exists, making it potentially vastly more
interesting, assuming the computer can recognize that many keystrokes at once.
Given how poorly it handles one, that's not a given.

Snafu (C+)No doubt there's plenty of jokes this Tron/Surround-like
game ought to be a pack-in cart for the Aquarius, given the military meaning for
the title's acronym. But this is at least an average version of the genre, even
if it's slow, choppy and not up to the quality of its Intellivision brethren.
Variations such as four on-screen paths and random obstacles help, although
figuring out the controls is a real pain.

Stalacties (D+)Sigh. Such potential wasted. This vertical shooter
is another simple concept that would make a great homebrew game, except it's
missing one key thing - it starts easy and never gets harder. You control a
spaceship along the bottom the screen that shoots ever-increasing lines of
characters that descend from the top of the screen. It's a little bit Missile
Command, a little bit like the spikes in Tempest, a little bit Tetris. There's a
bit of challenge in that the rows of characters don't descend evenly, with some
dropping relatively quickly for brief spurts. The problem here is the world
relatively. It's easy to keep up simply by holding down the fire key and moving
back and forth across the screen. If the action gradually sped up or somehow got
more difficult this would be a winner. But instead it may not maintain interest
for more than one game - because that game never ends until you walk away.

Torment (C)A puzzle game that might appeal to those once willing
to spend hours on a Rubik's Cube, as this is definitely not a quick diversion
despite the presence of a timer that acts as scorekeeper. The player pushes
blocks one at a time into a pattern in the center of the screen that matches one
on display. The colors appear to come in cycles, so while you may only need one
purple to complete a pattern, dozens may appear and you'll have to place them
and then push them out of the way when more useful colors appear. It definitely
takes time to work out strategies for completing a pattern, but once you have
the challenge is largely lost and it simply becomes a major time-consumer. But
by then those who enjoy this will have logged enough time to justify having this
program in their collection.

Utopia

Tron Deadly
Discs (C-)Some all-time classic videogaming moments were somehow wrung
of that futuristic wreck of a movie known as "Tron," but this isn't one of them.
It's not the concept at fault - this arena disc-hurling combat game is a joy to
play on the Intellivision and Atari 2600. There's some promise in this version,
including a decent pseudo 3D background and ideal use of the built-in graphics
characters. But choppy movement is nuisance and terrible collision detection is
a killer - the flicker is so bad half of the hits and collisions with enemies
and discs don't seem to register. Worse still are the extremely complex
multi-directional controls, with the <RETURN> key forcing either left-hand
movement or a cross-handed playing style for righties. It was all but unworkable
on a regular keyboard with an emulator - I can't imagine what using the original
Aquarius might be like.

Utopia (A-)When fans refer to something as the 0.5 version of
Civilization, Simcity or Warcraft, that can only be a good thing. This
Intellivision port is one of the first, if not the first, real-time strategy
games and it loses less in the transition to the Aquarius better a lot of arcade
games. One or two players start by selecting the overall length of a campaign
and the length of "rounds" which determine how often new credits are issued for
deploying resources. The main screen features two islands - the computer
controls one in single-player mode - upon which things such as crops, housing,
factories, hospitals, schools, soldiers and boats can be deployed. Weather,
rebels and pirates are among the extra hazards to deal with as players try to
build wealth and population in their quest for a governor's award. Two-player
games can be competitive or cooperative against the computer-generated elements.
The major drawback of the game is a lack of on-screen intuitiveness - you really
need to have the instructions and read them since there's almost no chance of
figuring out what's happening otherwise. Overall, though, it's an example of a
genre even the humblest of computers can excel at.

Retrogaming Times Issue #81 is online

by Alan Hewston

Please check out the latest issue of the Retrogaming Times, issue #81, by Tom
Zjaba. After taking a break at issue #80, about 18 months ago, Tom is back with
a new issue. It's good to see Tom back again, and he may also have a Bit Age
Times issue soon as well.

Time to bring the curtain down on another issue. Before we go we'd like to
congratulate RTM writer Alan Hewston for reaching 50 consecutive issues where he
has contributed a "Many Faces of" article. That's a lot of dedicated work to the
retrogaming community, and of course includes his efforts date back to issue #33
of the Retrogaming Times. Alan has now covered about 73 games in his reviews and
totaled 400 unique versions in detail. Waytogo, Alan!

Next month is going to be our special Winter Games issue, just in time for
the 2006 Winter Olympics, which will feature more than a few special articles.
Hope to see you there!